JPH11296534A - Information providing device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an information providing device which enables an application or user to obtain pieces of information from a broadcasting system, a communication system and a storage system without being aware of them. SOLUTION: This information providing device has a broadcast receiving means 110 which receives broadcasts, a broadcasting system control means 109 which controls the reception in the broadcast receiving means 110, a storage means 107 which stores information on storage media, a storage system control means 107 which controls the information storage by the storage means 106, a communication means 102 which sends and receives information to and from a communication network, a communication system control means 103 which controls the communicating operation of the communication means 102, and an information acquisition control means 108 which controls the operations of the broadcasting system control means 109, a storage system control means 107, and communication system control means 103. At a request for information, the information acquisition control means 108 judges the location of the information, and acquires and shows proper means from the control means for one of the broadcasting system, storage system, and communication system, so that the side which requires information need not be aware of which of the broadcasting system, storage system, and communication system the requested information is obtained from.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an information providing apparatus as a terminal for providing multimedia information including broadcast video to a user.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as an information providing apparatus for providing a combination of information to be broadcast and information obtained from a communication line and / or information already stored, Japanese Patent Laid-Open Publication No. Hei.
It is disclosed in 230360 gazette. FIG. 12 shows the configuration of the information providing apparatus described in the above publication. Hereinafter, the related art will be described with reference to FIG. In FIG. 12, a control device 1107 transmits information obtained from a communication system or a broadcast system via a communication medium device 1106 to a package medium 11.
The information is displayed on the output device 1002 in combination with the information obtained from the information 04 and provided to the user.

[0003] In addition to those described above, Japanese Patent Publication No. 6-38
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 87-298153 discloses a combination of a radio broadcast and a still image transmission, and JP-A-7-298153 discloses a combination of a television image and a stored facsimile image.

[0004]

However, in the prior art, first, information obtained from each of a broadcasting system, a communication system, and a storage system is required to be used for requesting information although it is presented in association with each other. Requires the application or user to be aware of which information is in which media and request and indicate it in different ways,
It was inconvenient to use and had poor extensibility when an information path was added to the system.

Second, in order to obtain and present a broadcast program centered on a video broadcast only at a certain time, it is necessary for a user to instruct in advance that the program should be obtained from a broadcasting system. The information must be treated specially separately from the information obtained from the user, and often confused the user.

Third, it is necessary for the user to individually specify which information to be stored in the storage medium among the information obtained from the broadcasting system and / or the communication system for each information or each information category. It took time and effort for the user.

[0007] Fourth, in order to propose to the user to purchase content including information that suits the user's interest, for example, a pay program to be broadcast in the future or a package content currently on sale in the shop, first, second, and It is necessary to incorporate a new means in addition to the means for solving the third problem, which is disadvantageous in cost.

Fifth, when storing information obtained from a communication system and / or a broadcast system, a means for storing only information necessary for a user is not provided, and the cost of storing information increases. was there.

[0009]

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention firstly provides a broadcast receiving means for receiving a broadcast, a broadcast system control means for controlling reception by the broadcast receiving means, and storing information. A storage means for storing the information in the storage medium, a storage control means for controlling the storage of information in the storage means, and an information acquisition control means for controlling the operations of both the broadcast control means and the storage control means; The information acquisition control means determines the location of the information and controls the storage system control means and / or the broadcast system control means, whereby the storage means and / or
Alternatively, appropriate information is obtained from broadcast receiving means and presented. As a result, there is an effect that the information requesting side does not need to be conscious of whether the requested information is obtained from the broadcasting system or the storage system.

[0010] Second, information acquisition is performed by obtaining information 2 which is included in the broadcast received by the broadcast receiving means or related to the information 1 stored by the storage means or which can be predicted to be required to be presented in the future. The control means controls to obtain and present the information 2 from the broadcast receiving means and / or the storage means. As a result, it is possible to automatically obtain necessary information, and it is possible to save the user's labor.

Thirdly, in the second embodiment, the information acquisition control means proposes to the user to acquire information which is determined not to be automatically available. As a result, there is an effect that a function of proposing the purchase of the content to the user can be realized without adding new means.

Fourth, when the information obtained from the communication means for exchanging information with the communication network and / or the broadcast receiving means is stored in the storage means, an editing process is performed in advance to store the information. . As a result, only the information necessary for the user can be stored, and the storage cost can be reduced.

[0013]

The invention according to claim 1 of the present invention provides, as an information providing apparatus, a broadcast receiving means for receiving at least a broadcast, a broadcast system control means for controlling reception by the broadcast receiving means, Means for storing information in the storage medium, storage system control means for controlling the storage of information in the storage means, and information acquisition control means for controlling the operations of both the broadcast system control means and the storage system control means. In response to the request, the information acquisition control means determines the location of the information and controls the storage system control means and / or the broadcast system control means to obtain and present appropriate information from the storage means and / or the broadcast reception means This has the effect that the information requesting side does not need to be aware of whether the requested information is obtained from the broadcasting system or the storage system.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided the information providing apparatus according to the first aspect, wherein the information contained in the broadcast received by the broadcast receiving means or stored in the storage means is stored.
Information acquisition control means controls the acquisition of information 2 related to
The information 2 is obtained and presented from the broadcast receiving means and / or the storage means, and has an effect that information can be easily selected.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to the first aspect, information which will be required to be presented in the future among information included in a broadcast received by the broadcast receiving means is provided. The information acquisition control means decides and accumulates it in advance in the accumulation means and presents it as needed, so that the necessary information can be acquired automatically and the user's labor can be saved. It has the effect of being able to.

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to the third aspect, information or a part of the information included in the broadcast is stored in consideration of a probability that information presentation is required. Or not, and
It is possible to select information that is highly necessary in terms of probability, automatically obtain the information, and save the user's labor.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to the third aspect, it is determined whether to store information or a part of the information included in the broadcast in consideration of the value of the information. In this way, information having high usefulness in view of the value of the information is selected, the information can be automatically obtained, and the user can be saved.

According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to the third aspect, information or a part of the information included in the broadcast is received and stored in consideration of the cost for receiving the information. It is determined whether or not to do so, and it is possible to select information of low price, to automatically obtain the information, to save the user's labor, and to reduce the cost. .

According to a seventh aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to the third aspect, information or a part of the information included in the broadcast is stored in consideration of the cost for storing the information. This has the effect of selecting information of low price, automatically obtaining the information, saving the user's labor and reducing costs.

According to an eighth aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to the third aspect, whether information or a part of the information included in the broadcast is stored in consideration of the time required for obtaining the information is determined. Is determined, and information can be quickly obtained, and the time can be effectively used.

According to a ninth aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to the first aspect, the information related to the information 1 previously stored by the storage means among the information included in the broadcast received by the broadcast receiving means. Information 2 is automatically stored by the storage means,
Information 2 accumulated in response to a request for information related to information 1 is presented, and has the effect of realizing a function of proposing a user to obtain content without adding new means. .

According to a tenth aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to the ninth aspect, information or a part of the information included in the broadcast is stored in consideration of a probability that information presentation is required. This has the effect of selecting information that is highly necessary in terms of probability, automatically obtaining the information, and saving the user time and effort.

According to an eleventh aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to the ninth aspect, it is determined whether to store information or a part of the information included in the broadcast in consideration of the value of the information. In this way, information having high usefulness in view of the value of the information is selected, the information can be automatically obtained, and the user can be saved.

According to a twelfth aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus of the ninth aspect, the information or a part of the information included in the broadcast is stored in consideration of the cost for receiving the information. Is to decide whether or not
Inexpensive information is selected, the information can be obtained automatically, and the user can be saved.

According to a thirteenth aspect of the present invention, there is provided the information providing apparatus according to the ninth aspect, wherein information or a part of the information included in the broadcast is stored in consideration of the cost for storing the information. Is to decide whether or not
Inexpensive information is selected, the information can be obtained automatically, and the user can be saved.

According to a fourteenth aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to the ninth aspect, whether information or a part of the information included in the broadcast is stored in consideration of the time required for obtaining the information is determined. Is determined, and information can be quickly obtained, and the time can be effectively used.

According to a fifteenth aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to the first aspect, communication means for exchanging information with a communication network, and communication system control means for controlling operation of the communication means are provided. In response to a request for information, the information acquisition control means determines the location of the information and controls the storage system control means and / or the broadcast system control means and / or the communication system control means so that the storage means and Appropriate information is obtained and presented from the broadcast receiving means and / or the communication means, and the information requesting side is obtained from the broadcast system or obtained from the storage system at the information requesting side. In addition to the fact that it is not necessary to be aware of whether or not the content can be purchased, it has the function of realizing the function of proposing the user to purchase the content without adding new means.

[0028] According to a sixteenth aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to the fifteenth aspect, information included in a broadcast received by the broadcast receiving means, stored by the storage means, or obtained by the communication means is provided. The information acquisition control means controls the acquisition of the information 2 related to the information 1, and acquires and presents the information 2 from the broadcast receiving means and / or the storage means and / or the communication means. It has the effect that it can be easily performed.

According to a seventeenth aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to the fifteenth aspect, information contained in a broadcast received by the broadcast receiving means and / or information obtained by the communication means is presented in the future. The information acquisition control means judges the information that will be required, accumulates it in advance in the accumulation means, and presents the information as necessary. It has the effect of presenting.

[0030] The invention according to claim 18 of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to claim 17, is obtained by information and / or communication means included in the broadcast in consideration of the probability of requesting the presentation of information. This is to decide whether to store information or a part of the information, and it is possible to select information that is highly necessary in terms of probability, to automatically obtain the information, Can be omitted.

According to a nineteenth aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to the seventeenth aspect, information included in the broadcast and / or information obtained by communication means or the information of the information is considered in consideration of the value of the information. It is designed to decide whether to store a part or not. Information with high usefulness in terms of the value of the information is selected, and it can be obtained automatically, saving the user's trouble. Has the effect of being able to.

According to a twentieth aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus of the seventeenth aspect, information included in the broadcast and / or information obtained by the communication means in consideration of the cost for receiving the information. Alternatively, it is determined whether or not to store a part of the information. Inexpensive information is sorted out, the information can be obtained automatically, and the trouble of the user can be saved. This has the effect of reducing costs.

According to a twenty-first aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to the seventeenth aspect, information included in broadcast and / or information obtained by communication means in consideration of a cost for storing information. Alternatively, it is determined whether or not to store a part of the information. Inexpensive information is sorted out, the information can be obtained automatically, and the trouble of the user can be saved. This has the effect of reducing costs.

According to a twenty-second aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to the seventeenth aspect, the information included in the broadcast and / or the information obtained by the communication means in consideration of the time required for obtaining the information. It is determined whether or not a part of the information is to be stored. This has an effect that information can be obtained quickly and time can be effectively used.

According to a twenty-third aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to the fifteenth aspect, the storage means of the information contained in the broadcast received by the broadcast receiving means and / or the information obtained by the communication means is used. The information 2 related to the information 1 previously stored is automatically stored by the storage means, and the stored information 2 is presented in response to a request for the information related to the information 1. It has the effect that it can be easily performed.

According to a twenty-fourth aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to the twenty-third aspect, the information provided by the information and / or communication means included in the broadcast in consideration of the probability of being required to present the information. This is to decide whether to store information or a part of the information, and it is possible to select information that is highly necessary in terms of probability, to automatically obtain the information, Can be omitted.

According to a twenty-fifth aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to the twenty-third aspect, the information included in the broadcast and / or the information obtained by the communication means or the information of the information is considered in consideration of the value of the information. It is designed to decide whether to store a part or not. Information with high usefulness in terms of the value of the information is selected, and it can be obtained automatically, saving the user's trouble. Has the effect of being able to.

According to a twenty-sixth aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to the twenty-third aspect, information included in the broadcast and / or information obtained by the communication means in consideration of a cost for receiving the information. Alternatively, it is determined whether or not to store a part of the information. Inexpensive information is sorted out, the information can be obtained automatically, and the trouble of the user can be saved. This has the effect of reducing costs.

According to a twenty-seventh aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to the twenty-third aspect, the information included in the broadcast and / or the information obtained by the communication means in consideration of the cost for storing the information. Alternatively, it is determined whether or not to store a part of the information. Inexpensive information is sorted out, the information can be obtained automatically, and the trouble of the user can be saved. This has the effect of reducing costs.

According to a twenty-eighth aspect of the present invention, in the information providing device according to the twenty-third aspect, the information included in the broadcast and / or the information obtained by the communication means in consideration of the time required for obtaining the information. It is determined whether or not a part of the information is to be stored. This has an effect that information can be obtained quickly and time can be effectively used.

According to a twenty-ninth aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to the first aspect, it is proposed that a user be provided in advance to obtain information predicted to be required to be presented in the future. Therefore, it is possible to select information having high necessity on the basis of future prediction, to obtain the information in advance, and to save the user's trouble.

According to a thirtieth aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to the thirty-ninth aspect, the information to be obtained is stored in a storage medium. Has the effect that the selection of information can be performed in advance based on.

According to a thirty-first aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to the thirty-ninth aspect, information to be obtained is included in a broadcast. This has the effect that the user can save time and effort.

According to a thirty-second aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to the thirty-ninth aspect, the information requested to be presented is information 1 already acquired or information 1 acquired in the future.
The information has a function that information can be easily selected.

According to a thirty-third aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to the thirty-second aspect, the information to be obtained is stored in a storage medium.
This has the effect that information can be sorted out in advance based on predictions unique to individual users.

According to a thirty-fourth aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to the thirty-second aspect, the information to be obtained is included in the broadcast, and the request prediction is obtained by the broadcast. This has the effect that the user can save time and effort.

According to a thirty-fifth aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to the third aspect, the information is edited and stored in advance when storing the information, and only the information necessary for the user is stored. Can be stored, and the storage cost can be suppressed.

According to a thirty-sixth aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus of the ninth aspect, the information is edited and stored in advance when storing the information, and only the information necessary for the user is stored. Can be stored, and the storage cost can be suppressed.

According to a thirty-seventh aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus of the seventeenth aspect, information is edited and stored in advance at the time of storage, and only information necessary for a user is stored. Can be stored, and the storage cost can be suppressed.

According to a thirty-eighth aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus of the twenty-third aspect, the information is edited and stored in advance when storing the information, and only the information necessary for the user is stored. Can be stored, and the storage cost can be suppressed.

According to a thirty-ninth aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus according to the fifteenth aspect, it is proposed that the user be provided in advance with information expected to be required to be presented in the future. This has the effect of realizing a function of proposing the purchase of content to the user without adding new means.

According to a forty-ninth aspect of the present invention, in the information providing apparatus of the third aspect, the information or a part of the information included in the broadcast is received and stored in consideration of the user's interest in the information. This method has the effect of increasing the frequency of use or the efficiency of use of information by aggregating information that matches the interests of the user.

Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.
This will be described with reference to FIG.

(Embodiment 1) FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of an information providing apparatus according to the present invention. FIG.
In the figure, 101 is a communication network for performing data communication such as the Internet, 102 is a communication means for performing data communication by connecting to the communication network 101, 103 is a communication system control means for controlling the operation of the communication means 102, and 104 is a hard disk , 105 is a portable storage medium such as a DVD-RAM, 106 is the storage medium 104, the portable storage medium 10
5, a storage unit for controlling the operation of the storage unit 106; and 111, an antenna 11 for receiving a broadcast signal.
0 decodes the broadcast signal received through the antenna 111
Broadcast receiving means 109 for separating and extracting necessary data
Is a broadcast control means for controlling the operation of the broadcast receiving means 110, 112 is an information presenting means for presenting information in response to a user's request for information, and 108 is a communication means for responding to an information request from the information presenting means 112. This is an information acquisition control unit that acquires necessary information by controlling the system control unit 103, the accumulation system control unit 107, and the broadcast system control unit 109, and passes the acquired information to the information presentation unit 112.

The operation of the information providing apparatus configured as described above will be described below. First, information on a program that can be received from a broadcast can be obtained through the antenna 111 and the broadcast receiving unit 110 using, for example, the function of the EPG. The information obtained here is, for example, in the form of a table shown in the program broadcast table of FIG.
8 can be referred to. In FIG. 2A, “information ID” is an identifier uniquely assigned to each piece of information included in a program, “broadcast scheduled” is a channel number and broadcast time at which a broadcast is scheduled, and “keyword” is ,
Indicates a keyword added to each piece of information so that the information can be selected.

Next, it is assumed that the program video obtained through the broadcast receiving unit 110 is stored in the storage media 104, 105 via the storage system control unit 107 and the storage unit 106.
At the time of this storage, which information is stored in which location of the storage medium is recorded. This record can be referred to by the information acquisition control means 108 in the form shown in the stored program table of FIG. 2B, for example. In FIG. 2B, “Information I
“D” is an identifier uniquely assigned to each piece of information included in the stored program, and “media ID” is uniquely assigned to identify a plurality of storage media, similarly to “information ID” in FIG. 2A. The given identifier, "file name", represents a file path in the storage medium of the file storing the program.

It is assumed that the information a (1) is requested from the information presenting means 112 to the information obtaining means 108 in the state where the information is held as described above. At this time, the information obtaining means 108 is configured to store the program broadcast table shown in FIG.
(B) Referring to the stored program table, a method of obtaining the information a (1) is determined. In the case of this example of FIG.
Since (1) is described in the program broadcast table (a), the broadcast receiving unit 110 shown in FIG.
It can be seen that it can be obtained from. Then, the information obtaining means 108 sets the recording of the program including the information a (1) in the recording set list shown in FIG. The recording set list is a list for storing which programs have to be recorded, and by controlling the broadcast control means 109 and the storage control means 107 in FIG. 1 based on this list, Broadcast receiving means 11 via antenna 111
0 is recorded on the storage medium 104 and / or the portable storage medium 105 via the storage means 106. In FIG. 2C, "information ID" represents an identifier uniquely assigned to each piece of information included in a program to be recorded. This is shown in FIGS. 2 (a) and 2 (b).
Is the same as the "information ID" that appears in the "." “Recording schedule” indicates a schedule for recording a program, that is, a channel number for receiving a broadcast and a recording time. The “recording medium ID” corresponds to the “media ID” in FIG. 2B, and indicates on which storage medium the program is recorded. The “file name” corresponds to the “file name” in FIG. 2B and indicates which file on the storage medium is to be stored.

When the scheduled recording time of the information a (1) shown in FIG. 2C is reached, the broadcast system control means 109 of FIG. 1 controls the broadcast receiving means 110 to start reception, and at the same time stores the received video. Medium 104 and / or portable storage medium 1
The storage system control means 107 controls the storage means 106 so as to store the program video in the program 05, and the program video is recorded. By passing the accumulated video to the information presenting means 112 during the recording of the video or after the end of the recording,
Information a (1) can be presented to the user.

Assume that information a (2) is requested in the same state. At this time, since the information on the information a (2) is described in the stored program table in FIG.
The information acquisition means 108 has a media ID: 6282137
File on 7902 storage medium: / a / b / file
2 that information a (2) has already been stored, and issues a request to the storage system control means 107 to provide the contents of the file to the storage means 106.
(1) can be provided to the information presenting means 112 and presented to the user.

As described above, in the present embodiment, broadcast receiving means 110 for receiving a broadcast, broadcast control means 109 for controlling the reception by broadcast receiving means 110, and information to storage medium 104 and / or Accumulating means 106 for accumulating in the portable accumulating medium 105; accumulating system control means 107 for controlling accumulation of information in the accumulating means 106;
09 and the storage control means 107 for controlling the operation of both the storage control means 107 and the broadcast control means 107 in response to a request for information. By controlling the control means 109, the storage means 106 or the broadcast receiving means 11
By obtaining and presenting appropriate information from 0, it is not necessary for the requesting side to be conscious of whether the requested information is obtained from the broadcast system or the storage system. Can be obtained.

In this embodiment, the program information is E
Although it is obtained by using the function of the PG, the same effect can be obtained by using information from the Internet instead of the EPG, for example. Also,
Although the program information is referred to in the form of the program broadcast table shown in FIG. 2A, the same effect can be obtained even if the data format is such that the program acquisition method can be understood. Also,
The stored program information is referred to in the form of the stored program table shown in FIG. 2B. However, if the data format is not a table form, it can be known where the stored information is stored. Similar effects can be obtained. Also, the program to be recorded is set in the form of a recording set list in FIG. 2 (c), but if the information can be set in a manner that allows the program to be reserved for recording without being in the form of this list. Similar effects can be obtained.

(Embodiment 2) The operation of the information providing apparatus configured as shown in FIG. 1 for automatic acquisition of related information in this embodiment or information expected to be required in the future will be described. First, the information presenting means 11
2 analyzes the user's preferences and interests or the user inputs a keyword for information selection, and the user is interested in information including the contents described by the keyword for various keywords. The degree of interest (degree of interest) is arranged in a table shown in FIG.
Let me record it. Here, "attr" described in the keyword column is an attribute name, and "key" is an attribute value, that is, a character string serving as a keyword. It is assumed that the degree of interest “Pa” substantially corresponds to the probability that information including the keyword is requested by the user. Further, it is assumed that the storage system control means 107 organizes and stores information related to the already stored information in the form of a table shown in FIG. 3B. Here, “information ID” is an identifier assigned to each piece of information to identify each piece of information. The “hit ratio” is a value that records how much a search keyword has been hit when searching for the information when the information is stored. That is, it indicates how much the stored information matches the user's interest.

It is also assumed that the broadcast system control means 109 holds information on a program scheduled to be broadcast in the form of a table shown in FIG. Here, the “information ID” is for identifying information included in the broadcast. "keyword"
Is a keyword (here, a pair of an attribute name and an attribute value) used for searching for the information. “Information size” is the capacity required to store the information. The “time required for acquisition” is the time required to complete the accumulation of information obtained from the broadcast, and generally corresponds to the time from the current time to the broadcast end time. The “price” is, for example, the amount that the user must pay when listening to the pay broadcast.

Further, it is assumed that the communication system control means 103 holds information on information available from the communication system in the form of a table shown in FIG. Here, the “information ID” is
This is for identifying information included in the data.
The “keyword” is a keyword (here, a pair of an attribute name and an attribute value) used for searching the information. “Information size” is the capacity required to store the information. The “time required to complete acquisition” is the time required to complete the storage of information obtained from the communication system, and generally corresponds to the data download time. "price"
Is the amount required to obtain the information if the information is charged. The tables described above (FIG. 3A, FIG.
(B) When the information acquisition control unit 108 can refer to FIGS. 4A and 4B), the information acquisition control unit 108 determines whether to automatically record certain information a (i). Is described.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart for explaining the algorithm of the processing procedure for determining automatic recording. Hereinafter, description will be given along the flowchart of FIG. First, when the process of determining automatic recording is started (501), the hit ratio Ha (i) of the information a (i) is calculated by, for example, (Equation 1) (50).
2).

(Equation 1) ... (Equation 1)

In the above (Equation 1), k represents a keyword. Γa (k, i) is the scheduled broadcast program table (FIG. 4)
In (a)), the function is 1 when the keyword of the information a (i) includes the keyword k, and 0 otherwise. Pa (k) is the information request probability (FIG. 3)
(A) shows the degree of interest for the keyword k. Γc (k, j) is the stored information list (FIG. 3
In (b)), 1 if the keyword k is included in the related information keyword of the information c (j), and 0 otherwise.
Is a function that takes Hc (j) is the hit rate of the information c (j). That is, Ha (i) indicates how interested the information a (i) is for the user, and if a (i) is referred to as information related to the already stored information, This is equivalent to the “value of information” in consideration of whether the user is interested. Next, the index A (i) of the information a (i) is calculated by, for example, (Equation 2) (503). A (i) = Ha (i) · Ta (i) / (Ca (i) · Sa (i)) (2)

In the above (Equation 2), Ha (i) is 50
2 is the hit ratio calculated by (Equation 1). Ta
(I) is information a (i) of a broadcast schedule program table (FIG. 4 (a)).
Indicates the time required to complete the acquisition. Ca (i) represents the price of information a (i) in the table. Sa (i) is information a in the table.
It represents the information size of (i). That is, A (i) is an index that takes into account the value of the information for the user, the time required to obtain the information, the price of the information, and the cost required to store the information in determining whether to obtain the information,
It represents "how much benefit is obtained to the user by obtaining the information". Next, it is checked whether the index A (i) is larger than a certain threshold value (504). If the index A (i) is larger than a certain threshold value, it is determined that the information a (i) is to be obtained, and the information a (i) is obtained based on the program broadcast table (FIG. 2A).
The program including (i) is set in the recording set list (FIG. 2 (c)) so as to be recorded, and the process of determining a series of automatic recording ends.

Thereafter, a recording set list (FIG. 2C)
On the basis of the information set in the
Controls the broadcast receiving means 110 or the storage system control means 107 controls the storage means 106 so that the information included in the program can be stored in the storage medium 104 or the portable storage medium 1.
05, the information ID of the simultaneously stored information,
The hit rate calculated by (Equation 1) and the keyword of the related information related to the information are stored in the stored information list (FIG. 3).
Set to (b)). The information thus recorded and stored is transmitted to the storage medium 104 or the portable storage device by the information obtaining control unit 108 giving an instruction to the storage system control unit 107 in response to the request from the information presentation unit 112 and controlling the storage unit 106. The information is read from the medium 105 and presented to the user. If the index A (i) is not larger than the predetermined threshold value in the processing step 504, the program including the information a (i) is set in the recording set list (FIG. 2C) so as to record. The process of deciding the automatic recording is ended without any processing. In this case, since the set for recording the program including the information a (i) is not set in the recording set list (FIG. 2C), the information included in the program is stored in the storage medium 104 or the portable storage medium 105. No operation for storing information is performed.

The above is an explanation of the automatic acquisition of information from the broadcasting system. Next, some information b about the communication system
A method in which the information acquisition control means 108 determines whether to automatically download (i) will be described. FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating the algorithm of the processing procedure for determining automatic download. Hereinafter, description will be given along the flowchart of FIG. First, when the process of determining automatic download is started (507), the hit rate H of the information b (i) is obtained.
b (i) is calculated by, for example, (Equation 3) (50
8).

(Equation 2) .... (Equation 3)

In the above (Equation 3), k represents a keyword. Γb (k, i) is an available data table (FIG. 4)
In (b)), this function is 1 when the keyword of the information b (i) includes the keyword k, and 0 otherwise. Pa (k) is the information request probability (FIG. 3)
(A) shows the degree of interest for the keyword k. Γc (k, j) is the stored information list (FIG. 3
In (b)), 1 if the keyword k is included in the related information keyword of the information c (j), and 0 otherwise.
Is a function that takes Hc (j) is the hit rate of the information c (j). That is, Hb (i) indicates how interesting the information b (i) is for the user and, if b (i) is referred to as information related to information already stored, This is equivalent to the “value of information” in consideration of whether the user is interested. Next, the index B (i) of the information b (i) is calculated by, for example, (Equation 4) (509). B (i) = Hb (i) · Tb (i) / (Cb (i) · Sb (i)) (Equation 4)

In the above (Equation 4), Hb (i) is 50
8 is the hit ratio calculated by (Equation 3). Tb
(I) is information b in the available data table (FIG. 4 (b))
Indicates the time required to complete the acquisition of (i). Cb (i) represents the price of information b (i) in the table. Sb (i) represents the information size of information b (i) in the table. That is, B (i)
Is an index that takes into account the value of the information for the user, the time required to obtain the information, and the price and the cost of storing the information in determining whether or not to obtain the information. Is there any merit? " Next, it is checked whether the index B (i) is larger than a certain threshold value (509). If the index B (i) is larger than a certain threshold value, it is determined that the information b (i) is to be obtained, and the download is started by giving an instruction to the communication system control means 103.

At this time, the storage system control means 107 controls the storage means 106 to store the information included in the downloaded data in the storage medium 104 or the portable storage medium 105, and at the same time, the information ID of the stored information, The hit rate calculated by the equation 3) and the keyword of the related information related to the information are stored in the stored information list (FIG. 3).
Set to (b)). The information downloaded and stored in this way is stored in the storage medium 1 by the information acquisition control unit 108 giving an instruction to the storage system control unit 107 and controlling the storage unit 106 in response to the request from the information presentation unit 112.
04 or read from the portable storage medium 105 and presented to the user. If the index B (i) is not larger than the predetermined threshold value in the processing step 510, the download processing operation (algorithm) ends without executing the download of the program including the information b (i).

As described above, in the present embodiment, the probability of obtaining information, that is, the degree of interest for the user, the cost of obtaining information, the cost of storing information, and the time required for obtaining information are considered. Information that is expected to be presented and / or information related to information that has already been stored is selected and automatically obtained in advance from a broadcasting system and / or a communication system by selecting information that is advantageous to the user. By accumulating the information, it is possible to obtain an effect that necessary information can be quickly presented in response to a user's request without any trouble of the user.

In this embodiment, the degree of interest of the user is recorded in the form shown in FIG. 3A, the information request probability. However, the degree of interest of the user can be known regardless of this format. Similar effects can be obtained by organizing the data format. FIG. 3 (b) shows the already stored information.
Although it is assumed that the stored information is stored in the form of a stored information list, similar effects can be obtained by organizing the data into a data format that allows the user to know the degree of interest in the stored information regardless of this format. .

Although the information of the program scheduled to be broadcast is held in the form of the broadcast schedule program table shown in FIG. 4A, it is possible to know the cost of obtaining the information from the broadcast regardless of this format. The same effect can be obtained as long as the data format can be used. In addition, information about information that can be obtained from the communication system is held in the form of an available data table in FIG. 4B, but any data format that can know the cost of obtaining the information regardless of this format is used. A similar effect can be obtained.

Although the determination as to whether or not to perform automatic recording is made based on the algorithm shown in FIG. 5, it is sufficient if the determination method takes into account the interest of the user and the cost of obtaining information without using this algorithm. For example, a similar effect can be obtained by using an agent for decision making. The calculation of the hit ratio and the index in the algorithm shown in FIG.
However, the same effect can be obtained regardless of this equation or the processing that takes into account the user's interest and the cost of obtaining information regardless of the definition of the hit rate and the index.

Further, the determination as to whether or not to download information is made based on the algorithm shown in FIG. 6. However, regardless of this algorithm, if the determination method takes into account the interest of the user and the cost of obtaining information, Often,
For example, a similar effect can be obtained by using an agent for decision making. In addition, in the algorithm shown in FIG. 6, the calculation of the hit rate and the exponent is performed according to (Equation 3) and (Equation 4). The same effect can be obtained as long as the processing is performed in consideration of interest and information acquisition cost.

(Embodiment 3) With respect to the information providing apparatus configured as shown in FIG. 1, it is suggested to the user to obtain information that the information obtaining control means in this embodiment determines not to be automatically available. The operation will be described. FIG. 7A shows a document A (60) which is information already stored in the storage medium 104 or the portable storage medium 105.
It is a conceptual diagram showing that information a (602) related to 1) was not obtained. Similarly, FIG. 7B shows that information b (604) related to scene B included in video (603), which is information already stored in storage medium 104 or portable storage medium 105, has not been obtained yet. FIG. The state shown in FIG. 7B is, for example, the state shown in FIG.
It is represented by the data format shown in the program-related information, the information definition in FIG. 9B, and the information content in FIG. 9C.

In FIG. 9A, the first and second items in parentheses (“1230” and “2200” in this example) represent the numbers of the video frames in the program video, the former being the start frame, and the latter being the start frame. Indicates the end frame. The third item indicates what information is related to the scene in the section between the start frame and the end frame. The scene described in the first row indicates that information indicated by “info1” is associated. Here, the “association” means that, for example, when the user performs an operation such as a mouse click while the scene of the frame section is displayed on the screen of the information providing apparatus, related information (eg, document information) is displayed on the screen. This means that settings such as display are performed. FIG.
(B) shows the definition of information "info1" associated with the program-related information (FIG. 9 (a)). Here, the genre is "music" and the performer is "A"
In addition, it indicates that information including the keywords “duet” and “interview” is defined as “info1”. When searching for and obtaining information associated with the program-related information (FIG. 9A), FIG.
Those that meet the conditions described in the information definition of (b) are searched and obtained. FIG. 9C describes the information content of each piece of information to be searched and obtained. Here, the information “a” has the genre “music”, the performers “A”, “B”, “C”, and the description “A”
Is duet and B ". In this example, i
Since the information content of the information a (FIG. 9C) matches the information definition of the nfo1 (FIG. 9B), the scene between the 1230th frame and the 2200th frame of the program 1 is displayed on the screen. When the user clicks the mouse with
Will be displayed on the screen.

In this state, it is assumed that the content information shown in FIG. 8A, that is, the information of the package software that is commercially available or is scheduled to be commercially available, can be obtained, and the information obtaining control unit 108 can refer to it. For example, it is assumed that the communication system control unit 103 controls the communication unit 102 to obtain content information by downloading content information on the Internet. In the content information (FIG. 8A), the “storage location” indicates where the information is stored, for example, which package software, broadcast program, or pay site on the Internet. "Title" indicates the title of the package software or the program name. “Holding information” indicates what information the content holds.

As shown in FIG. 7A, the document A is
When the scene B has already been stored in the storage medium 104 or the portable storage medium 105 as shown in FIG.
, But cannot be obtained from the broadcasting system and the communication system, that is, information a and information b are included in the broadcast schedule program table (FIG. 4A) and the available data table (FIG. 4B).
If it is determined that the is not registered, the information acquisition control unit 108 performs the following processing.

First, a title holding information a or information b is searched for among package software and pay broadcast programs described in the content information (FIG. 8A).
In the example of FIG. 8A, the package software P1 (the package software whose title is "title 1") is found.
Next, the information presenting unit is instructed to display a screen for recommending the user to purchase the found package software. At this time, a reason for recommendation, that is, information indicating that information related to the document A and the scene B in this example is included in P1 is added. A screen for recommending the purchase of the package software to the user is, for example, as shown in FIG.

As described above, in the present embodiment, the information acquisition control means proposes to the user to acquire the information which is determined not to be automatically available, so that the content can be acquired without adding new means. And a function of proposing purchase to the user can be realized.

In this embodiment, the information related to the video and the content of the information are shown in FIG.
(B) If the information is held in the form shown in the information definition and the information contents shown in FIG. 9 (c), a data system that can be used to determine the association between the video portion and the information and the correspondence between the information to be searched and the information regardless of the format. Then, the same effect can be obtained.

(Embodiment 4) The information providing apparatus configured as shown in FIG.
Communication means 102 for exchanging information with
Alternatively, an operation of performing an editing process in advance and storing the information obtained from the broadcast receiving unit 110 in the storage unit 106 will be described. First, it is assumed that program video and document data are obtained as shown in FIG. Here, reference numeral 901 denotes an image of the program 1 received by the broadcast control unit 109 by controlling the broadcast receiving unit 110, and includes a scene A and a scene B. Reference numeral 902 denotes an image of the program 2 received in the same manner, and includes a scene C. Reference numeral 903 denotes a document a downloaded by the communication system control unit 103 controlling the communication unit 102, and reference numeral 904 denotes a downloaded document c similarly. The horizontal axis of the figure represents time, and the rightward direction represents later in time. In this example, the download of the document a is started first, the reception of the program 1 is started next, the document c is downloaded during that, and the reception of the program 2 is started. The downloaded data and the received program are temporarily stored in the storage medium 104 through a buffer or storage means 106 provided on the memory. Downloading and reception are automatically performed by the judgment of the information acquisition control means. Next, the information acquisition control means judges the importance of the information based on the degree of interest of the user shown in the information request probability (FIG. 3A), extracts only necessary information from the acquired information, and reconstructs the information. I do.

In this example, reconstruction is performed as shown in the editing result of FIG. In FIG. 10B, reference numeral 905 denotes a video generated by connecting scene A and scene B included in program 1 (901) and scene C included in program 2 (902). 906 is document a, 907 is document c
Are associated with the scenes A and B of 905, respectively. The data edited in this way is stored as new content in the storage medium 10 via the storage means 106.
4 or stored in the portable storage medium 105, read out by the storage means 106 and passed to the information presenting means 112 in response to a presentation request from the user, and the information presenting means 112 presents the information to the user.

As described above, in the present embodiment, when the information obtained from the communication means for exchanging information with the communication network and / or the broadcast receiving means is stored in the storage means, the editing processing is performed in advance to store the information. That's it.
As a result, only the information necessary for the user can be stored, and the storage cost can be reduced.

In this embodiment, the importance of the information is determined based on the degree of interest of the user by using the information request probability in FIG. 3A. A similar effect can be obtained by using a data format that allows the user to know the interest in.

The information providing apparatus according to the present invention is realized by, for example, the hardware configuration shown in FIG. 11, reference numeral 1001 denotes a program broadcast table (FIG. 2A), a recording set list (FIG. 2C), and an information request probability (FIG. 3).
(A)), scheduled broadcast program table (FIG. 4 (a)), available data table (FIG. 4 (b)), content information (FIG. 8 (a))
Is a memory for storing Memory 1001
Also serves as a buffer for temporarily storing data being downloaded or broadcast video being received. 1002
Connects the hard disk 1003 and the DVD-RAM 1004 via the SCSI cable 1012 to the internal bus 101.
3 is a SCSI board for connection. 1003
Are stored program table (FIG. 2 (b)), stored information list (FIG. 3 (b)), program related information (FIG. 9 (a)), information definition (FIG. 9 (b)), and information contents (FIG. 9 (b)). 9 (c)) and a hard disk for storing the received program video and downloaded information, and a DVD 1004 for storing the received program video and downloaded information
-RAM. Reference numeral 1005 denotes a video board for transmitting a display signal to a display 1009 that displays information provided by the information presenting means 112 to the user. 1006
Is a central processing unit (CPU) for operating software for realizing the function of the information acquisition control means 108.
The storage system control unit 107, the communication system control unit 103, the broadcast system control unit 109, and the information presentation unit 112 are also CPU10.
06. Further, the driver of the hard disk and DVD-RAM corresponding to the storage unit 106 is also a CPU.
1006. A broadcast demodulation board 1007 demodulates a broadcast radio signal received by the antenna 1010, and corresponds to the broadcast receiving unit 110. A communication interface board 1008 for communication with the data communication network 1011 corresponds to the communication unit 102.

[0090]

As described above, according to the present invention, first, broadcast receiving means for receiving a broadcast, broadcast control means for controlling reception by the broadcast receiving means, and storage for storing information in a storage medium Means, a storage control means for controlling the storage of information in the storage means, and an information acquisition control means for controlling the operations of both the broadcast control means and the storage control means. The control means determines the location of the information and obtains and presents appropriate information from the storage means and / or the broadcast receiving means based on the control operation of the storage system control means and / or the broadcast system control means. The effect is that it is not necessary for the side requesting the user to be conscious of whether the requested information is obtained from the broadcasting system or the storage system.

Second, information 2 which is included in the broadcast received by the broadcast receiving means or related to the information 1 stored by the storage means or which can be predicted to be required to be presented in the future.
The information acquisition control means controls the acquisition of the information 2 and obtains and presents the information 2 from the broadcast receiving means and / or the storage means, whereby the necessary information can be automatically obtained,
The effect that the user's trouble can be saved can be obtained.

Thirdly, in the second mode, the information acquisition control means proposes to the user to acquire the information which cannot be automatically acquired, thereby purchasing the content without adding a new means. Can be realized.

Fourth, when the information obtained from the communication means for exchanging information with the communication network and / or the broadcast receiving means is stored in the storage means, it is necessary for the user to perform editing processing and store the information in advance. Therefore, it is possible to accumulate only important information, and it is possible to obtain an effect that an accumulation cost can be suppressed.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of an information providing apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2A illustrates an example of a configuration of a program broadcast table according to the first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2B illustrates an example of a configuration of a stored program table according to the first embodiment of the present invention. (C) A diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a recording set list according to the first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 (a) Information request probability according to the second embodiment of the present invention (b) Diagram showing an example of the configuration of a stored information list according to the second embodiment of the present invention

FIG. 4A is a diagram showing an example of a configuration of a broadcast schedule program table according to the second embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4B is an example of a configuration of an available data table according to the second embodiment of the present invention. Diagram shown

FIG. 5 is a flowchart illustrating an algorithm of a processing procedure for determining automatic recording according to the second embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating an algorithm of a processing procedure for determining automatic download according to the second embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 7A is a conceptual diagram of information relating to a document according to the third embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7B is a conceptual diagram of information relating to a scene according to the third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8A is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of content information according to a third embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 8B is a diagram illustrating an example of a proposal screen to a user according to the third embodiment of the present invention.

9A is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of program-related information according to the third embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 9B is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of information definition according to the third embodiment of the present invention. c) A diagram showing an example of a configuration of information content according to the third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10A is a diagram illustrating data reception according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 10B is a conceptual diagram illustrating an editing result according to the fourth embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing an example of a hardware configuration of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a block diagram according to a conventional technique.

[Description of Reference Numerals] 101 data communication network 104 hard disk 105 DVD-RAM 110 antenna 701 record storing content information 1009 display device 1010 antenna 1011 data communication network 1013 internal bus

──────────────────────────────────────────────────の Continued on the front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁶ Identification symbol FI H04L 12/58 G06F 15/403 340A // H04N 7/173 H04L 11/20 101B

Claims (43)

[Claims] 1. A broadcast receiving means for receiving at least a broadcast, a broadcast control means for controlling reception by the broadcast receiving means, a storage means for storing information in a storage medium, and a control for storing information in the storage means. Storage control means, and information acquisition control means for controlling the operations of both the broadcast control means and the storage control means. The information acquisition control means determines the location of the information in response to a request for information. An information providing apparatus characterized in that appropriate information is obtained from a storage unit and / or a broadcast receiving unit and presented by controlling the storage system control unit and / or the broadcast system control unit. 2. The broadcast receiving means according to claim 1, wherein said information obtaining control means controls obtaining information 2 related to said information 1 which is included in a broadcast received by said broadcast receiving means or stored by said storage means. And / or an information providing device for acquiring and presenting the information 2 from the storage means. 3. The information acquisition control unit according to claim 1, wherein information included in the broadcast received by the broadcast reception unit and which is required to be presented in the future is determined by the information acquisition control unit and stored in the storage unit in advance. An information providing apparatus characterized by presenting the information as needed. 4. The information providing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein whether to store information or a part of the information included in the broadcast is determined in consideration of a probability that information presentation is required. . 5. The information providing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein whether to store information or a part of the information included in the broadcast is determined in consideration of the value of the information. 6. The information providing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein it is determined whether to receive and store information or a part of the information included in the broadcast in consideration of a cost for receiving the information. apparatus. 7. The information providing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein whether to store information or a part of the information included in the broadcast is determined in consideration of a cost for storing the information. 8. An information providing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein whether to store information or a part of the information included in the broadcast is determined in consideration of a time required for obtaining the information. 9. The information processing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein, among the information included in the broadcast received by the broadcast receiving means, information 2 related to the information 1 previously stored by the storage means is automatically stored by the storage means. 1. An information providing apparatus characterized by presenting information 2 stored in response to a request for information related to 1. 10. The information providing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein whether to store information or a part of the information included in the broadcast is determined in consideration of a probability that information presentation is required. . 11. The information providing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein whether to store information or a part of the information included in the broadcast is determined in consideration of the value of the information. 12. The information providing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein whether to store information or a part of the information included in the broadcast is determined in consideration of a cost for receiving the information. 13. The information providing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein whether to store information or a part of the information included in the broadcast is determined in consideration of a cost for storing the information. 14. The information providing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein whether to store information or a part of the information included in the broadcast is determined in consideration of a time required for obtaining the information. 15. In addition to the configuration according to claim 1, further comprising communication means for exchanging information with a communication network, and communication system control means for controlling the operation of the communication means, wherein information is obtained in response to a request for information. The control unit determines the location of the information and controls the storage system control unit and / or the broadcast system control unit and / or the communication system control unit so that the storage unit and / or the broadcast reception unit and / or the communication unit can perform appropriate operations. An information providing device for acquiring and presenting information. 16. The information acquisition control unit according to claim 15, wherein the acquisition of the information 2 related to the information 1 included in the broadcast received by the broadcast reception unit, stored by the storage unit, or obtained by the communication unit. , And obtains and presents the information 2 from a broadcast receiving unit and / or a storage unit and / or a communication unit. 17. The information acquisition control means according to claim 15, wherein information which is required to be presented in the future among information included in the broadcast received by the broadcast reception means and / or information obtained by the communication means is provided. An information providing apparatus characterized in that the information is determined in advance, stored in advance by a storage unit, and presented as needed. 18. The information processing apparatus according to claim 17, wherein the information contained in the broadcast and / or the information obtained by the communication means or a part of the information is stored in consideration of the probability that the information is requested to be presented. An information providing device characterized by determining. 19. The configuration according to claim 17, wherein it is determined whether to store the information included in the broadcast and / or the information obtained by the communication means or a part of the information in consideration of the value of the information. Information providing device. 20. The configuration according to claim 17, wherein it is determined whether to store information included in the broadcast and / or information obtained by the communication means or a part of the information in consideration of a cost for receiving the information. An information providing device, comprising: 21. The configuration according to claim 17, wherein it is determined whether to store information included in the broadcast and / or information obtained by the communication means or a part of the information in consideration of a cost for storing the information. An information providing device, comprising: 22. The configuration according to claim 17, wherein information included in the broadcast and / or
Alternatively, an information providing apparatus for determining whether to accumulate information obtained by a communication unit or a part of the information. 23. The information processing apparatus according to claim 15, wherein, of information included in the broadcast received by the broadcast receiving means and / or information obtained by the communication means, information 2 related to information 1 previously stored by the storage means. Automatically accumulate by accumulating means,
An information providing apparatus characterized by presenting information 2 stored in response to a request for information related to information 1. 24. The configuration according to claim 23, wherein it is determined whether information contained in the broadcast and / or information obtained by the communication means or a part of the information is to be stored in consideration of a probability that information presentation is required. An information providing device characterized by determining. 25. The configuration according to claim 23, wherein it is determined whether to store the information included in the broadcast and / or the information obtained by the communication means or a part of the information in consideration of the value of the information. Information providing device. 26. The configuration according to claim 23, wherein it is determined whether to store the information included in the broadcast and / or the information obtained by the communication means or a part of the information in consideration of the cost for receiving the information. An information providing device, comprising: 27. The configuration according to claim 23, wherein it is determined whether to store information included in the broadcast and / or information obtained by the communication means or a part of the information in consideration of a cost for storing the information. An information providing device, comprising: 28. The configuration according to claim 23, wherein information included in the broadcast and / or
Alternatively, an information providing apparatus for determining whether to accumulate information obtained by a communication unit or a part of the information. 29. The information providing apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising a function of proposing to a user that information expected to be required to be presented in the future is obtained in advance. 30. The information providing apparatus according to claim 29, wherein the information to be obtained is stored in a storage medium. 31. The information providing apparatus according to claim 29, wherein the information to be obtained is included in the broadcast. 32. The information providing apparatus according to claim 29, wherein the information 2 requested to be presented is information related to information 1 already obtained or obtained in the future. 33. An information providing apparatus according to claim 32, wherein the information to be obtained is stored in a storage medium. 34. The information providing apparatus according to claim 32, wherein the information to be obtained is included in the broadcast. 35. The information providing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein an editing process is performed in advance when storing the information and the information is stored. 36. The information providing apparatus according to claim 9, wherein an editing process is performed in advance when storing the information and the information is stored. 37. The information providing apparatus according to claim 17, wherein an editing process is performed in advance when storing the information and the information is stored. 38. The information providing apparatus according to claim 23, wherein an editing process is performed in advance when storing the information and the information is stored. 39. The information providing apparatus according to claim 15, further comprising a function of proposing to a user that information expected to be required to be presented in the future is obtained in advance. 40. The information providing apparatus according to claim 3, wherein it is determined whether to receive and store information included in the broadcast or a part of the information in consideration of a user's interest in the information. 41. The information acquisition control means according to claim 1, wherein the information acquisition control means converts the information of the program received from the broadcast into an information ID which is an identifier uniquely assigned to each piece of information included in the program, and a broadcast schedule. A broadcast schedule representing a channel number and a broadcast time, and a keyword which is an identifier added to each piece of information so that the information can be selected are held in a form of a program broadcast table in a table format, An information providing apparatus characterized by controlling acquisition of information by referring to the information. 42. The configuration according to claim 1 or 41,
The information acquisition control means, the program information received from the broadcast,
An information ID that is an identifier uniquely assigned to each piece of information included in the stored program, a media ID that is an identifier uniquely assigned to identify a plurality of storage media, and storage of a file storing the program An information providing apparatus which stores a file name indicating a file path in a medium and a stored program table in a table format, and recognizes which information is stored in the storage medium by referring to the table. 43. The information acquisition control means according to any one of claims 1, 41 and 42, wherein the information acquisition control means assigns information of the program received from the broadcast to an identifier uniquely assigned to each information included in the stored program. , Recording schedule data indicating a channel number for receiving broadcast and recording time, a media ID which is an identifier uniquely assigned to identify a plurality of storage media, and storage of a file storing a program. An information providing apparatus which stores a file name indicating a file path in a medium and a recording set list in a table format, and controls a recording reservation setting operation by referring to the recording set list.